Dew Electric

water stalk condenser towers

Mimicking the Namib Beetle, each ‘water stack’ condenser in DEW electric is designed to draw water out of the air while simultaneously generating electricity providing valuable commodities of both fresh water and power in the desert landscape of Abu Dabi. Each condenser is constructed from a pneumatic tube that circulates cool seawater. When the warm moist air of the surrounding atmosphere reaches the surface of the tubes, water vapor condense on the colder surface of the tower textured much like the beetle’s hydrophyllic shell. The water in the tubes is then returned to the sea in a closed loop system to be re-chilled by the sea. The delta in temperature around the chilled water stock towers creates a negative pressure that draws air down the column spinning a 7.5 kilowatt wind turbine that generates electricity to feed the grid as well as the pumps that draw the water from the sea to the condensers. The whole passive system collectively create a piece of artwork in the field punctuated by the ‘rain space’ a water garden the provides cool in a gathering space.